Android OS - 61/164 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Feb

[Updated: Prepaid Cards Are Back] Google Puts Prepaid Card Provisioning On Pause Following Wallet Security Scare

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Android OS, Applications, News

Following the discovery of two security exploits within Google Wallet, the Vice President of Google Wallet and Payments, Osama Bedier, released a statement reassuring readers that Google takes "concrete actions" to protect its users. The statement further indicated that, in response to Wallet's security scare, Google has put prepaid card provisioning on hold, at least until a permanent fix is issued (which should happen "soon").

Update 2/14/12: Prepaid card provisioning has been restored:

Yesterday afternoon, we restored the ability to issue new prepaid cards to the Wallet. In addition, we issued a fix that prevents an existing prepaid card from being re-provisioned to another user.

Feb

Acer Confirms Iconia Tab A500 Ice Cream Sandwich Update In Australia And New Zealand Will Arrive In April 2012

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Acer, Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0, Iconia Tab A500, News

Acer ANZ just announced a distant April timeline for the Ice Cream Sandwich update to float all the way to Australia and New Zealand. Unfortunately, this doesn't tell us anything about the rest of the world, but unless they're delivering it by pigeon mail, I see it as a pretty good indicator of when it will hit the States, Europe, and other continents as well. Unfortunately,

Great news, everyone! We’ve just got confirmation from HQ that the Iconia Tab A500 will be getting Ice Cream Sandwich in April. No exact date yet, but we’ll let you know when we have it.

Feb

Rumor: HTC Phones Will Get PlayStation Certification Later This Year

Posted by David Ruddock in Android OS, Games, HTC, News, Rumors, Sony

According to Pocket-lint, Sony is planning to bestow PlayStation Certification onto upcoming HTC Android smartphones by the middle of the year. What does said certification entail?

Basically, the PlayStation Suite project (of which PlayStation Certified hardware is a part) currently consists of a dozen or so ported PSX titles from Sony's back catalog - like Crash Bandicoot, or Syphon Filter. They work on PS Certified Android phones as well as the PlayStation Vita.

Retro gaming has certainly experienced a second-wind on smartphones thanks to emulation, and Sony is trying to capitalize on that interest through more legitimate (and profitable) channels.

Feb

Editorial: The PlayStation Vita Is A Vivid Reminder Of Sony's Tenuous And Evolving Relationship With Android

Posted by David Ruddock in Android OS, Editorials, Games, Off-Topic, Sony

We certainly aren't a console video gaming blog, but when reviews of the US version of Sony's PlayStation Vita started cropping up this morning, I couldn't help but take notice of the new mobile console system's software. Particularly, how... smartphoney it looks.

Image via The Verge

Everything in Sony's Vita OS has been appified - Google Maps is there, while Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare, and Skype apps are forthcoming. Sony has its own suite of apps as well, including a full-blown browser which, although it appears to be pretty terrible, is apparently the best on any mobile gaming device to date. But the point is this: the Vita's OS looks and tries to be a lot like a smartphone's.

Feb

YouTube For GoogleTV Poised To Receive A Slew Of Enhancements Via Update Later This Week

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Android OS, Applications, News

In a post to the official GoogleTV blog earlier today, Product Manager Jurek Foryciarz revealed that Youtube for GoogleTV is set to receive an update "in the next few days," bringing some "big improvements" to the app.

First off, Google touts smoother navigation, and a new feature called "discover," which allows users to find YouTube channels by categories, which range from comedy, to cooking, to news, and more.

Next up, you can expect the YouTube app to feature channel pages, meaning users can navigate an individual channel's playlists, videos, and subscribe to said channel quickly and easily.

On the topic of channel interaction, users will also be able to see related videos and videos from the same user, just by clicking the up or down arrows on their remote.

Feb

[Download] First CM9 Builds Released For LG Optimus 2x And G2x – Get Them While They're Hot

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Android OS, Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0, Optimus 2X (Star, p990)

Earlier today, Ricardo Cerqueira (aka RC of the CM team) posted on Google+, teasing that a CM9 build for LG's Optimus 2x (P990) would be available soon. For some time now, the CM team has been keeping a spreadsheet on Google Docs, tracking the P990 build's progress, which indicates that, as of 2/9, ICS for the Optimus 2x is all but fully functional, carrying only "partial" functionality for the phone's camera and video playback capabilities.

About an hour ago, RC followed up with another post, linking users to download mirrors of the first CM9 builds for both LG's Optimus 2x and G2x (P999).

Feb

Acer Iconia Tab A200 Ice Cream Sandwich OTA Update Being Pushed Out Now

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0, Iconia Tab A200, News

It looks like owners of Acer's Iconia Tab A200 have something to celebrate today, as reports of an update (to Android 4.0.3) began rolling in early this morning. The update brings the A200's build number up to Acer_AV041_A200_1.037.00_PA_CUS1.

If the update hasn't hit your A200 just yet, you can check manually using the ever-familiar process: just go to Settings > About tablet > System update > Check now. It's worth mentioning that this build is different from the version that leaked several days ago (1.019.00), but there's no word yet on exactly what the differences are.

Source: Acer Tablet Forum

Thanks, Charlie Collin!

Feb

[Hands On] Norton Identity Safe Beta For Android Keeps Account Info Secure And Convenient, Provides An Enjoyable, Safe Browsing Experience

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Android OS, Applications, News

In an effort to keep all your passwords both safe and convenient, while also protecting your web surfing experience, Symantec has created Norton Identity Safe Beta, an app that allows users to store their login information on their computer and mobile device, while enjoying a safe browsing experience on both.

Many of you may be aware that there are several apps that perform this function already. SplashID Safe, Keeper Password & Data Vault, and others provide a very similar service, but Norton ID Safe brings a couple of key differences to the table.

First off, Norton's solution not only offers a Mac/PC element, but actually requires users to be running the service on their computer to use the mobile application.

Feb

[Weekend Poll] Tracking The Android Invasion: How Many Android Devices Have You Owned?

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Android OS, Polls

This is the latest in our Weekend Poll series. For last week's, see Are You Using A Custom Launcher?

With over 700,000 Android devices being activated per day and 3.7 million activated over Christmas alone, it should be pretty old news by now that our favorite OS is taking over. And as with most fanboys, loyalty to the Android OS runs deep - many who purchase one Android product fall in love with it, and are likely to purchase more (and Google's syncing capabilities certainly don't hurt!)

So, how many Android devices have you owned? For the purposes of this poll, let's exclude devices that run heavily customized, virtually proprietary builds of Android such as the Kindle(s) and Nook(s).

Feb

[Update: Extended Through Sunday] T-Mobile Planning Valentine's Sale – All Phones (And Some Tablets) Free

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Android OS, Deals, News, T-Mobile, Videos

T-Mobile is evidently planning a huge sale in celebration of Valentine's day, offering all phones (plus the Springboard tablet and G-Slate) free for one day only this Saturday, February 11th. The deal will apply to current and new customers with Value or Classic Plans. Customers looking to take advantage of the sale will need to pay the 2-year subsidy, and will receive a full reimbursement via mail-in rebate card.

Update: The sale was apparently extended by an extra day through end of Sunday due to downed systems and busy stores that couldn't handle demand.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fW24eHQg5JY

It sounds like those looking to pick up certain devices (including the Galaxy SII and HTC Amaze 4G) may need to have a 5GB data plan to be eligible for the sale.